Continuous health monitoring: integrating biomarkers for the management of chronic diseases

With the recent progresses of the information and communication technologies, biosensors and nanotechnologies, the access to continuing health monitoring is becoming real. The development of efficient, accurate and interactive solutions integrating biomarkers for continuing health monitoring might contribute to an improved care of some chronic diseases like hypertension, diabetes or heart failure. Continuing health monitoring might also enhance the efficiency and safety of patient’s treatments.     

Clinical implication of pretreatment neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio in soft tissue sarcoma

Introduction: Elevated neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio has been identified as a prognostic indicator in malignancies whereas; its association with extremity and trunk soft tissue sarcoma remain unclear. The aim of this study is to determine the utility of full blood neutrophil lymphocyte ratio (NLR) in preoperative diagnosis and its predictive value for survival in patients managed for soft tissue sarcoma of the trunk and extremities.

Method: 223 patients who presented with a soft tissue tumor were retrospectively reviewed. The study period was from January 2002–December 2009. Preoperative NLR as well as demographics, clinical and histopathological data were analysed.

Results: Full blood NLR was significantly higher in patient with a soft tissue sarcoma compared to benign soft tissue tumors (p < 0.001). Cox regression analysis demonstrated that elevated NLR >5 (p < 0.05) may be an adverse prognostic factor for Overall Survival.

Conclusion: The preoperative NLR is a simple, investigation predicting the preoperative diagnosis of a soft tissue sarcoma and a predictor of worse overall survival for patient with a soft tissue sarcoma.     

Risk,parental autonomy and the epistemic divide: preimplantation genetic diagnosis in the Australian print news media, 1990–2007

Preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) is a reproductive/genetic technology which has become the subject of public and scholarly debate because it involves the evaluation and consequent selection (and implantation) or destruction of human embryos. This research investigates the way PGD is constituted in the Australian print news media. Foucauldian discourse analysis reveals that proponents draw on their direct knowledge and experience of PGD to support their claims. There is an epistemic divide between consumers and others claiming direct knowledge, and critics and others drawing on indirect or abstract understandings of PGD. This divide characterizes the discourses present in the data and is directly linked to changes in these over the period under analysis.     

Enrichment of low-molecular-weight proteins from biofluids for biomarker discovery

The dramatic progress in mass spectrometry-based methods of protein identification has triggered a new quest for disease-associated biomarkers. Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry and its variant surface-enhanced laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry, provide effective means to explore the less studied information slice of the human serum proteome – low-molecular-weight proteins and peptides. These low-molecular-weight proteins and peptides are promising for the detection of important biomarkers. Due to the significant experimental problems imposed by high-abundance and high-molecular-weight proteins, it is important to effectively remove these species prior to mass spectrometry analysis of the low-molecular-weight serum and plasma proteomes. In this review, the advantages afforded by recently introduced methods for prefractionation of serum, as they pertain to the detection and identification of biomarkers, will be discussed.     

Detection of Architectural Distortion in Prior Mammograms via Analysis of Oriented Patterns

We demonstrate methods for the detection of architectural distortion in prior mammograms of interval-cancer cases based on analysis of the orientation of breast tissue patterns in mammograms. We hypothesize that architectural distortion modifies the normal orientation of breast tissue patterns in mammographic images before the formation of masses or tumors. In the initial steps of our methods, the oriented structures in a given mammogram are analyzed using Gabor filters and phase portraits to detect node-like sites of radiating or intersecting tissue patterns. Each detected site is then characterized using the node value, fractal dimension, and a measure of angular dispersion specifically designed to represent spiculating patterns associated with architectural distortion.Our methods were tested with a database of 106 prior mammograms of 56 interval-cancer cases and 52 mammograms of 13 normal cases using the features developed for the characterization of architectural distortion, pattern classification via quadratic discriminant analysis, and validation with the leave-one-patient out procedure. According to the results of free-response receiver operating characteristic analysis, our methods have demonstrated the capability to detect architectural distortion in prior mammograms, taken 15 months (on the average) before clinical diagnosis of breast cancer, with a sensitivity of 80% at about five false positives per patient.     

Leveraging Metabolomics to Assess the Next Generation of Temozolomide-based Therapeutic Approaches for Glioblastomas

Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is the most common adult primary tumor of the central nervous system. The current standard of care for glioblastoma patients involves a combination of surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy with the alkylating agent temozolomide. Several mechanisms underlying the inherent and acquired temozolomide resistance have been identified and contribute to treatment failure. Early identification of temozolomide-resistant GBM patients and improvement of the therapeutic strategies available to treat this malignancy are of uttermost importance. This review initially looks at the molecular pathways underlying GBM formation and development with a particular emphasis placed on recent therapeutic advances made in the field. Our focus will next be directed toward the molecular mechanisms modulating temozolomide resistance in GBM patients and the strategies envisioned to circumvent this resistance. Finally, we highlight the diagnostic and prognostic value of metabolomics in cancers and assess its potential usefulness in improving the current standard of care for GBM patients.     

羊水直接PCR法快速诊断脊肌萎缩症的实验研究

目的：建立一种快速、简便的产前诊断脊肌萎缩症的检测方法。方法：基于运动神经元生存基因SMNc和SMNt的两个同源拷贝碱基的差异,对SMNt基因第7、8外显子进行缺失分析,抽取孕妇羊水后用作者自行研制的“HpH—Buffer”,以离心后羊水沉淀中的胎儿细胞为模板直接进行PCR扩增,扩增产物进行酶切限制性片断长度多态性分析,对2例有脊肌萎缩症患儿生育史的孕妇怀有的胎儿进行产前基因诊断。同时,为考察羊水直接扩增方法的效率,对羊水样本直接扩增和对羊水样本中提取的基因组DNA扩增进行了平行实验。结果：2例胎儿均有SMNt基因第7、8外显子缺失;以羊水为模板和以基因组DNA为模板进行扩增的效率相似。结论：应用“HpHBuffer”直接对羊水样本中SMN基因上外显子7、8进行扩增,结合限制性片断长度多态性分析SMNt上是否发生缺失,可缩短诊断时间,节约诊断成本,减少检测过程中可能出现的样本交叉污染,有望成为临床上产前诊断脊肌萎缩症的新方法。     

超声检查在肛周感染性疾病中的诊断价值

目的:通过对一定样本的肛周感染患者的超声影像分析,探讨超声检查在肛周感染性疾病中诊断的价值,旨在早期为临床提供早期干预证据.方法:利用飞利浦IU22超声对我院2010年10月到2012年10月收治的60例肛周感染患者进行扫查,根据病变部位,特征及超声声像图进行分型分析并与实际手术结果对照,评价超声在肛周感染性疾病上的诊断及治疗方法选择的价值.结果:超声诊断单纯型肛周脓肿28例,肛瘘20例,复合型肛周脓肿12例;与手术所见符合率分别为单纯脓肿93.33％,肛瘘100.0％,复合型肛周脓肿90.91％.术前超声诊断和手术确诊病例数之间没有统计学差异(P＞0.05).结论:超声在肛周感染性疾病的诊断中具有快速、准确、经济等独特的优势,并可根据声像图对其作出较准确的分型,为临床治疗方法的选择提供可靠的依据.